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Customer Review Summary for Toyota Highlander

4.7

(393 Reviews)

Nicest car I have ever owned

2009 Toyota HighlanderGerald Smith - Marco Island, FL06/13/2015

Although this car was 5 years old when I purchased it, it had less than 30,000 miles and looked and drove like brand new. It is by far the nicest car I have ever owned; some people have their Cadillacs or Mercedes, I have my Toyota. It's a good thing it has cruise control because it rides so smooth down the highway you can hit 90 without realizing it. I had it in for an oil change and the guys in the shop told me you can't go wrong with a Highlander. It is really quiet, smooth riding, and actually gets great gas mileage for a vehicle its size (around 24 MPG city/freeway). The second row seats are incredibly roomy even for a full grown adult. The quality interior looks classy and has no annoying rattles or squeaks.

Great (for what it is)

2008 Toyota HighlanderGregbuquerque - New Mex10/13/2012

For the last 14 years, I've been driving a Chevy SUV. Things change, and I'm now in a 2008 Highlander Sport. The adjustment has been mentally difficult, but all in all, I'm happy.
The Toy really is a crossover, not an SUV, not a truck. It's front wheel drive, with electronic AWD, but no center differential. This is quite diffent from the Chevy. The V6 is fine, but it's taking a while to get used to the drive by wire gas pedal. It does have What I call a manumatic transmission. You can easily downshift, upshift, but I wouldn't say the vehicle offers "spirited driving". It handles admirably on dirt roads, desert terrain. But it sits very low to the ground. The sunroof is a nice option, the leather is quality. The base cushion of the seat is not fully tilt-adjustable. Although the heated seats are nice, the comfort of the Chevy buckets were far superior.
As expected, the Highlander handles, drives like a car-- this is nice. The steering is very responsive. The tires grip the road. I have not driven it in the snow, but it handles very well in the rain, in sand, on gravel, pavement. With the leather package, sunroof, it feels luxurious. Although zero to sixty isn't impressive, I've passed trucks on the interstate, and was surprised to find I was moving in excess of 110 MPH, with more power available.
Although I keep comparing it to my previous truck, and could complain about the field of view, storage, clearance, lack of 4wd, smaller engine, etc, I am very happy with the vehicle. However, there are some things I wish Toyota would improve upon. First, there is a significant lack of storage space available to the driver. The glovebox is large, but the center console is tiny. Ahead of the console is a small tray where I keep my cellphone, Altoids, flashlight. It could be bigger, without the annoying center divider. The sterio display is impossible to read while wearing polarized glasses. The spedometer is blocked by the steering wheel. Although the wheel is adjustable, it could be moreso. Also, the power outlets are not in convenient locations for the modern driver, who may have a gps, phone, tablet, etc. And I clipped a panoramic mirror to the rear view. That made driving a lot less scary, especially at night. The back-up camera hinders driving over toddlers, but the mirrors are certainly necessary.

Best Highlander I've had

2014 Toyota HighlanderJoy Curtis - Townville, SC12/25/2016

This is the third Highlander I've leased and the 2014 redesigned model has more features and has better styling than previous versions. This SVU is a dream to drive--quiet, smooth, easy to handle and great pick up when you need it--on the highway or around town. I've taken my 16 year old granddaughter for driving practice, and her comment was that the "car helped her to drive". My only negative is the tires that came on the car, while giving a great ride, did not last long. I've replaced them with better wearing tires.

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